AACTAs and GC ‘good fit’
Awards bosses, mayor keen to explore keeping Aussie ‘Oscars’ here after 2026
The bosses behind the Australian film and TV awards’ equivalent of Hollywood’s glitzy Oscars are keen to explore keeping it on the Gold Coast after the existing threeyear deal ends.
The Gold Coast hosted the first instalment of the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts awards and a well-attended festival expo across the past four days.
Under a deal relocating it from Sydney to Queensland, backed by Queensland government support, it will return to the Gold Coast in 2025 and 2026.
But both AACTA bosses and Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate said at the weekend they wanted to explore basing it here much longer.
Along with a glitzy main awards night on Saturday featuring stars Margot Robbie, Cate Blanchett, Harry Connick Jr, Joel Edgerton and director Ron Howard, plus the cream of Australian film and TV, 110 festival events attracted 20,000 RSVPs, surprising organisers.
AACTA chief executive Damian Trewhella said at the awards after-party at HOTA on Saturday: “The honeymoon at the moment is very sweet, the love is deep and we think it’s absolutely fantastic here.”
Asked if keen to stay on the Gold Coast after 2026, he said: “It’s a great question. We have certainly enjoyed the appetiser – this early period of the agreement – and we’d be certainly interested in exploring what’s on the menu for the main course.
“Part of it is the amazing precinct the Home of the Arts where we’ve been able to build the programs – often you run these events and it’s hard to get the same flow we’ve had here. We’ve had a very encouraging first outing. The energy has been very good.”
Asked if the AACTAs should be on the Gold Coast after 2026, AACTA director of programming and international
AACTA CEO engagement Sam Buckland said: “I think the AACTAs and the Gold Coast are a really good fit for each other and I would love that to happen.
“We have undertaken a first successful year – made a big first plunge and the key to staying here is continuing to have the support we have got. But we love it.”
Mr Buckland said AACTA had put its networking and skills festival “on steroids”, starting with the Land of Bad premiere on Wednesday night featuring Luke Hemsworth. Many of the career expo events, screenings, masterclasses and special effects workshops had been sold out.
Mr Tate, who revealed the
AACTA relocation last year with movie heavyweight and AACTA president Russell Crowe at Burleigh, said on the red carpet on Saturday: “Only a three-year contract? Wait and see, I think it’ll be a lot longer than that.”
Mr Tate said he was proud the city’s work to put the Gold Coast on the map in the film industry was paying off.
“The Gold Coast can do all,” he said.
“There’s a lot of planning being done by the council. We’re going to do another 30 sound studios in Yatala, we’re doing more post production and we want to be the best studio city in the southern hemisphere.”
City of Gold Coast chief executive Tim Baker said: “As long as the numbers stack up, they can stay for as long as they want.”
It’s understood Queensland – already regarded as an attractive place to film, given the facilities and financial incentives in place – bumped up the financial incentive for the AACTAs to move from Sydney after the NSW state government withdrew a $1m bid.
When Crowe visited a year ago to announce the move to the Gold Coast, he said at the time: “I like the way the government up here have been very keen on their focus in making sure that the industry here is growing.
“Queensland, it has to be said, in terms of film production, is leading the way so we want to be here and we want to be involved.
“I like coming work.” here it
“The honeymoon at the moment is very sweet, the love is deep and we think it’s absolutely fantastic here
Damian Trewhella
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